Over time, I will add resources to this website that will help you explore the night sky. And if you are a teacher, you will find the resources helpful in your teaching of some sections of the Australian Curriculum: Science Earth & Space Sciences component. 29 April 2014 Partial Solar Eclipse pinhole viewer Go here […]
Introduction Heavens-Above.com provides free customised information for your location including whole sky star charts, predictions for the visibility of the International Space Station and other satellites (including Iridium flares). Bookmarks for all capital cities are provided below. If you are located elsewhere, you can customise one of the below links to your location. All you […]
Free student astronomy newsletter You can download a free ‘Amazing Space!’ student newsletter for each term. The newsletter’s content will vary but currently includes finder charts for planets visible to the unaided eye (in the early evening sky), where to look for easily recognisable constellations and Moon phases for the months of that term. Potential […]
Moon, Saturn and Antares above the Eastern horizon tonight (with finder chart)
(Posted 18 April 2014) Unfamiliar with the night sky but want to see a planet with your own eyes? Tonight is a great opportunity to use the Moon as a kind of celestial signpost to spot the planet Saturn. Just head outside at 8:30 pm AEST and look for the Moon above the Eastern horizon. […]
Watch as the Moon joins Saturn tonight (with finder chart)
(Posted 17 April 2014) Unfamiliar with the night sky but want to see a planet with your own eyes? Tonight is a great opportunity to use the Moon as a kind of celestial signpost to spot the planet Saturn. Just head outside any time after the sky is dark tonight and you can see the […]
Watch as Venus eclipses a star tomorrow morning. Visible across Eastern Australia.
(Posted 16 April 2014) Even if you aren’t an early riser, you might want to consider dusting off your telescope, setting your alarm clock and getting up early tomorrow morning to watch Venus eclipse (or occult) a star tomorrow morning. While you won’t need a telescope to locate Venus (it will be the dazzlingly bright […]
RT @NASA_Johnson: The #ISS enters orbital sunrise…
RT @NASA_Johnson: The #ISS enters orbital sunrise as @SpaceX #Dragon gets set for berthing to Harmony node. http://t.co/Ztwg3LTkVX
RT @SpaceWeatherCA: 20 Apr 13:00 UT STORMY geomagn…
RT @SpaceWeatherCA: 20 Apr 13:00 UT STORMY geomagnetic activity currently observed: sub-auroral zone goo.gl/UljKmW
RT @SussanSays: And it begins! #solarstorm #aurora…
RT @SussanSays: And it begins! #solarstorm #auroraaustralis #tasmania http://t.co/fs36tQzUyS
Free download: Term 2 2014 Student Astronomy Newsletter Now Available
The Term 2 2014 edition of my ‘Amazing Space!’ newsletter for students is now available for free download from this website. This term’s issue includes: Finder charts for Saturn. No telescope required. Constellation finder charts for the Southern Cross and Scorpius Moon phases for April – June 2014 Preview of 29 April 2014 Partial Solar Eclipse (event times […]
Scaling the Universe. A modern version of ‘Powers of Ten’
One of the problems with understanding the size of the universe and everything in it, is it’s size. The famous 1977 film ‘Powers of Ten’ by Charles and Ray Eames first tackled this first (see below). In 2012, Cary & Michael Huang created a modern version of the classic video Powers of Ten through a Flash animation […]
Free download: Term 1 2014 Student Astronomy Newsletter Now Available
The Term 1 2014 edition of my ‘Amazing Space!’ newsletter for students is now available for free download from this website. This term’s issue includes: Finder charts for Jupiter. No telescope required. Constellation finder charts for the Southern Cross and Orion Moon phases for January – March 2014 Preview of 29 April 2014 Partial Solar Eclipse (event times […]
I finally got to see the last bit of tonight’s lunar eclipse and snapped the above photograph.
Tonight’s ‘Blood Moon’ lunar eclipse and the tetrad
Don’t be disappointed tonight (Tuesday 15 April 2014) when the totally eclipsed Moon doesn’t turn out to be literally ‘blood red’ (as apparently outlined in a New York best seller). The appearance of a lunar eclipse in real life varies dramatically and depends to a large degree on the level of dust in the Earth’s […]
Stunning image of Brisbane’s lights and part of ISS from space
(Posted 8 March 2014) If you read the Courier-Mail yesterday, you would have seen the stunning image of Brisbane’s lights from space on the front cover taken by one of the crew on board the International Space Station. It turns out the image is relatively old (2011) but that doesn’t mean it is any less […]